Hello. We will be setting up a table at Meet the Teacher Night. We will put everything in a blue PTA folder. Personally, my flyer will be in color--to help it stand out. (I am doing Programs this year.) So I would definitely combine all PTO/PTA stuff somehow. Whether in folder or just stapled.
As a mom of 5 and have two in school, I suggested to our group to wait a week. That first week of handbooks to read and sign, forms for this and that, etc I honestly felt it nessasary to wait a week and send home our info. I'm interested to see if my idea will be heard by the new board but the brightest color of paper or boldest print is not going to make any diffence if Mom and Dad have forms to returns, handbooks to read, anythingelse that may be more important to a parent than the PTO flyer.
Parents are so much busier than our parents were- something I take into consideration now more than ever.
Allie, our PTO each year has sent a handbook home with all the other back to school items. Due to the large number of pages, binding it all became an issue. This is very expensive! So, we decided to do a folder. Bright colored and cheap. We will put a PTO label on the front, info items on the left side, volunteer forms on the right. Our officers will also be written on the inside.
We had the same concerns as you do about parents ditching it all. We decided to send it home the second week of school to help that. We figured that some will throw away the info, but they will probably keep the folder (which has our info on it). Its hard to throw away something so useful. Besides most people you would want volunteering anyway are somewhat organized. This gives them a central location for anything marked 'PTO'.
Good Luck!
With so much sent home by the school, and so much to read, sign and return, and add to it the stuff the teacher sends home to read, sign and return, our PTO sends home a one page letter, in big type, that gives some basic info like when meetings are, who the current officers are, what our mission and goals for the year are, hope you'll join, etc. etc. etc. We send this home in the same folder that the school gives each parent. We begin sending home stuff the following week. Our stuff is easy to identify because it is bright pink (we call it PTO Pink).
Our PTO has several items that we'd like to send home on the first day of school. It seems like parents anticipate a lot of 'reading material' to come home the first day or two. My question is this: Should we send all of our PTO materials home in one folder? I am really torn. The folders would be donated and part of me thinks that it would be a good idea to keep things together. On the other hand, I fear that some (many?) parents will open the folder, see that it is all PTO stuff and throw the whole thing out...making their lives easier by not having to sort through the PTO stuff and the things that the school sends home.
Sorry this is so long! I welcome your comments. Thanks!
